Pecan Pie

After years of tinkering with this dough and that filling, I’ve struck recipe gold. Hah!

The dough stayed fluted – in its rustic way – and the filling set up nicely. Pastry, flakey.

What more could you ask for? Um, the recipe?

The Pastry

Makes 2 – 9″ pies

1 1/2 cups flour

1 tsp. salt

200 gr. (7 0z.) soft, unsalted butter cut into cubes

1 egg yolk

1/2 cup, more or less, ice water

Combine flour, salt and butter in a medium bowl. Work the butter into the flour and salt with your hands until you achieve a crumbly texture. Stir in the egg yolk.

Sprinkle water over the mixture and toss with a fork until the dough gathers together easily into a ball.

Divide into two equal size pieces, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate 30 minutes. Before rolling out, let dough come up to room temperature. Roll out over a flour dusted board. Place in pie plate. Flute the edges and refrigerate while you make the pie filling.

Pecan Pie Filling

Enough for one pie

1/2 cup sugar

2 eggs, lightly beaten

1 cup light syrup

2 T. melted butter

1 tsp. vanilla

pinch of salt

2 1/4 cup shelled pecan halves and pieces (mix it up a bit!)

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Whisk until combined the first six ingredients. Fold in the pecans until thoroughly coated. Pour into the pie shell.

Here's a delicious pasta dish that can be assembled and cooked with ease. It's one of those dishes that you can return to repeatedly - and I do - when the cupboard's looking a little bare, // read
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